


Till Death Do We Start

by GraySonOfGotham



Series: Not A Monster, Just Not Human AUs [6]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, DCU, Grayson (Comics), Nightwing (Comics), Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics)
Genre: Afterlife, Angst with a Happy Ending, Character Death, Death, Denial of Feelings, Falling In Love, Fluff and Angst, Ghosts, Haunted Houses, Human Dick, Implied Sexual Content, Love Confessions, M/M, Moving On, Real Estate Agent Dick, Sad Pillow Talk, Selling Houses, Soulmates, Supernatural Elements, Unfinished Business, ghost jason
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-22
Updated: 2018-05-22
Packaged: 2019-05-10 02:03:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,179
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14727872
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GraySonOfGotham/pseuds/GraySonOfGotham
Summary: Dick is a real estate agent, or he's trying to be. But a ghost haunts the house he is trying to sell, and scaring away all his potential buyers, so business is hard.And while Jason only claims to be having fun and enjoying annoying Dick, he has more selfish, personal reasons.





	Till Death Do We Start

“It is a very nice suburban home,” Dick said, smiling at the young couple. They were the third to ask about the house in the past week. “It’s a bit old, one of the only Victorian houses in town, but it is in great shape. The last lady who lived here used it as a vacation home, and she rarely lived here, so everything is in very nice condition.”

The couple murmured and looked around the house themselves. They seemed rather satisfied.

“Four bedrooms and three bathrooms,” Dick explained, leading them past the stairs towards the kitchen and dining room. “The kitchen is also very spacious. There is also a door that leads into a huge backyard, complete with a pool that was built only five years back and rarely used by the old lady.”

Dick gestured to the backyard through the window. The couple looked where he was pointing.

Then, Dick watched as their faces went pale and the girl clutched her husband’s arm harder.

Dick’s heart dropped. He turned around and as he expected, he saw absolutely nothing.

“Wh-What was that?” The woman asked, she looked even paler in her yellow dress.

Dick faked a cheery smile. “What was what?”

“There was… there was something outside the window!”

Dick laughed, waving his hand. “Oh, that’s just the oak tree in the yard. When the wind blows it, it casts odd shadows right outside of the window. Don’t worry, it’s given me a few scares as well.”

The couple look a bit dubious, but when Dick ushered them out of the kitchen and into the second living room, they quickly obliged.

“This room could be used as a den, or as a place to entertain guests,” Dick explained, gesturing around the large room. “It’s a bit dim in here, but a few lamps or some rewiring should easily fix that.” At that exact minute, the lights flickered rapidly, and the young woman screamed.

The lights steadied after a few seconds, and Dick gave them a strained smile. “Old houses. The electrical wiring may need to be looked at.” He waved the out of the room, glaring at the empty room around him.

“Would you like to take a look upstairs now?” Dick asked.

The woman looked at her taller husband and gave a minute shake of her head. The man smiled kindly, but he seemed a bit shaken as well. “No, thank you. We have a couple other places to look at. Thank you though,” he said.

Dick tried not to look discouraged. “Would you like to hear the offered price? It’s a very good deal!”

The man shook his head. “No, we need to think. This house is a bit big for the two of us. Thank you so much, though, Mr. Grayson.”

Dick shook his hand. “You’re welcome,” he said, giving them one last smile and walked them to the door. They opened the door quickly, and a cold gust of wind whipped inside, despite being the middle of summer, and have it be windless the past couple days. The couple gasped, and practically ran out of the house, not looking back.

Dick sighed, shutting the door when their car zoomed out of sight. He turned around, completely ignoring the ghostly apparition that floated in front of his face.

“Go away, Jason,” Dick said, his voice tinged with annoyance. “You just lost me another potential buyer.”

Jason, a young man, but a ghostly young man, zoomed after him. “But Dickie, I was bored! You don’t pay attention to me anymore!”

Dick gritted his teeth as he entered the kitchen, grabbing a cold water from the fridge. He did not answer, twisting the cap open and drinking the water in big gulps.

“Dick! Stop ignoring me!” Jason whined.

Dick threw the cap at him, the small object flying through the ghost.

Dick then threw the empty bottle at the ghost as well. “You’re fucking annoying,” Dick said. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “I told you to stay away when I’m showing people around the house.”

“It’s _my_ house,” Jason said. “They’re trespassing!”

“You’re _dead_.” Dick glared at him. “It’s not your house anymore. It hasn’t been your house for the past fifty years!”

Jason gasped in offense. “It is so my house! I was murdered here, so I think I deserve to call my last resting place mine. And everyone you bring is trespassing!”

Dick rolled his eyes. “And am I trespassing as well? Why don’t you kick me out as well?”

Jason floated closer, right in front of Dick now. “Oh, but you have special permission from me, sweetheart.”

Dick scoffed. “Right. I thought you just liked my face,” he said, walking away from Jason, knowing fully well the ghost would follow.

He went upstairs to gather his documents from the office where he had left it earlier. It was stuffy and hot upstairs, and it made Dick uncomfortable.

Jason was not bothered however. “I _do_ like your face!” he said. “I also really like your ass, and your thighs, and your voice, mMM!”

“You’re dead, Jason.”

“And yet, you’re talking to me. How do you know I’m not just part of your imagination?” Jason asked, floating backwards up the stairs. He held out his hands and made a shrugging position. “You could be crazy, Dickie, and you wouldn’t even know it.”

Dick gave him another annoyed look. “I’m pretty sure I’m not the crazy one. You just scared off my third buyer this week, and my previous five last week, and the three the week before that. I’m never going to sell this house at this rate!”

Jason sighed. “Has it been that long already? It only felt like a few days,” Jason said. “Mhm, yes, it’s only been four days since I’ve met you,” Jason said, his eyes closing. Then he gasped. “Oh, Dickie, do you remember what happened on the fourth day?”

Dick’s face burned. “Yes,” he gritted out.

Jason swept Dick’s documents off the desk. “I think I forgot. Mind reminding me again?”

Dick tried to grab the papers out of the air, but Jason floated them out of his reach.

“C’mon, remind me, and I’ll give the papers to you,” Jason taunted.

Dick jumped for the papers, but he could not reach them. He glared at Jason. “I kissed you, alright?! Now give me those papers, you stupid bastard!” He jumped for them again.

Yet, Jason kept them well out of his reach. “Sorry, Dickie, sweetheart. You’ll have to remind me better than that.” He puckered up exaggeratedly at Dick.

Dick sighed, looking up at Jason, pleadingly. “Please, Jason. I have work to do. Just give them to me.”

Jason shook his head. “No can do, Dick.”

Finally, Dick relented. “Fine, get down here, you insufferable idiot.”

Jason gleefully floated down, perching on Dick’s desk delicately.

Dick eyed the papers still floating near the ceiling, and he stepped forward, placing his hand on Jason’s cheek.

It was a weird thing. Jason could be insubstantial, or he could be very much solid. They found out one of the first days, when Jason had been trying to get Dick out of the house, and Dick had slipped and fallen over the side of the banister.

Then, Jason, in a panic, had reached out to catch him, and he actually caught him.

After Jason pulled Dick up, they kind of just stood in front of one another, and Dick kind of saw Jason for the first time.

Then, Jason admitted to having never touched another human before, so he asked to touch Dick again, and Dick held his hand up, and he touched Jason. It seemed stupidly cliché, but Dick was actually very much surprised that he actually could touch Jason. Jason felt like he was flesh and bones, very much solid under his fingertips, aside from feeling cooler, and being transparent.

Then, Dick had kissed him. It was a very stupid move on his part because after that, Jason has not left him alone.

But between then and now, they have had more than one incident. Dick had to admit, Jason was not bad looking. He was a very attractive young man, probably a few years younger than Dick when he died. And though he was a bit whiny at times, he had a great sense of humor, and he was actually kind of cute when he was not annoying Dick.

Dick touched Jason’s cheek, marveling at the softness of the ghost’s transparent skin.

Then he pressed his lips to Jason’s, still a bit surprised at the coldness. But he did not mind much, pressing harder, and Jason’s mouth opened with a slight gasp.

Dick slipped his tongue into Jason’s mouth, and he threaded his other hand through Jason’s hair, tugging gently. Jason was very much responsive. The kiss was slow and leisurely. They had all the time in the world, it seemed.

Finally, Dick pulled away. He met Jason’s eyes and smiled shyly. Jason returned his smile, not the cocky one he usually wore.

Jason hugged Dick to his chest and rested his chin on Dick’s shoulder. “I wish you wouldn’t try to sell this house,” he said quietly.

Dick closed his eyes. “I know,” he said. “I know you don’t want me to. But it’s my job. I can’t- I can’t just do that, Jay,” he said quietly.

“Then why don’t you just buy the house?” Jason asked. “Then you won’t need to worry about this any longer.”

Dick snorted quietly. “I can’t just buy every house I can’t sell. It looks bad for my business. I- I need to, Jason, I’m sorry.”

Jason pulled away, his eyes sad. He searched Dick’s face for a moment. Finally, he said, “I know, baby. I just- I wish you wouldn’t. I wish we could be together.” He touched Dick’s cheek.

Dick covered Jason’s hand with his own. “You’re dead, Jason. I don’t think it would have ever worked out. We both know that. This is… all just… temporary, right?”

Jason’s sad smile flickered. “Right. Just temporary.”

~

As they lay in bed later that night, Jason’s arms wrapped loosely around Dick’s body, their legs tangled together, and Dick’s face pressed into Jason’s chest, Dick felt a sharp pang in his heart.

It was not the first night Dick had illegally spent in the house with Jason, sleeping in one of the guest rooms he did not take visitors into. It was usually hot, but Jason kept the temperature cooler.

But as Dick lay there, his face pressed against Jason’s, the covers loosely covering their naked bodies, Dick could not bear the thought of never seeing Jason again.

“Jason,” Dick whispered. He tried to keep his voice steady. In that moment, he just wanted to hear Jason talk to him, just in case tomorrow he will wake up to find Jason gone. It was always like that. Whenever Dick got pressured into staying the night, his greatest fear was waking up to find Jason was all a dream. He wish he had not fallen in love with the ghost man, but he could not change it now.

“Hm?” Jason responded. He was not asleep, but Dick knew he liked pretending.

“Jay, why… why are you here?” He asked, his voice quivering the slightest.

Jason did not notice. He chuckled. “You mean besides us having sex? I don’t know, I can’t leave?”

Dick pressed a hand against Jason’s chest, feeling the solidity of the spirit. He closed his eyes, imagining that Jason was really there, human and alive. “I meant,” he whispered. “Why did you not… pass on when you died?”

Jason was quiet for a while. “I don’t know. I just woke up here, I guess. I think it had to do with unfinished business. That’s usually what it is, isn’t it?”

Dick pressed his forehead against Jason’s chest, his eyes still closed. He just listened to Jason talk, trying so hard to convince himself Jason was real and alive and tangible. But the lack of a breath and a heartbeat did not help. “How do you plan on completing this unfinished business if you can’t leave the house? Have you tried?”

Jason snorted. “You think I’d be here trying to convince you not to sell this stupid house if I could? I have tried, Dick. But I think if I could leave the house, I would… I would pass on to wherever the hell people go after death.”

“And you’ve tried?” Dick asked, pressing in harder. “Recently?”

Jason paused for a moment before answering. “I used to try on a near daily basis. But I haven’t… I haven’t tried since you came.”

Dick felt the stabs in his heart again. “Do you think,” he barely dared to whisper. “Do you think it would work now?” He held his breath.

Jason gasped, but his chest did not move with the false intake of breath. “You’re saying that my unfinished business was you?”

Dick felt tears welling up. “I hope not,” he whispered. “I really, really hope not, Jay. I don’t- I don’t want you to leave me.”

Jason did not respond, but he tightened his arms around Dick. There was a long stretch of silence as Jason mulled over the idea. Dick felt tears squeezing out of the sides of his eyes and two tears ran down the side of his face. He shook silently in Jason’s arms as he cried to himself.

Finally, Jason said, “I think you’re thinking too much, Dickie,” he whispered. “Sleep.”

 _Don’t leave me,_ Dick mouthed into Jason’s chest, not daring to make a sound, in case he started sobbing. _Please, stay._

He did not know if Jason felt it.

Dick cried himself into an uneasy sleep, falling asleep on the thought that Jason could very well be gone when he wakes up.

Dick woke up the next morning, and his eyes hurt. The sunlight felt too bright, and Jason was not beside him. Dick tried to calm the racing of his heart. Sometimes, Jason was already up when Dick woke up.

Dick forced himself to dress slowly, making himself clean the bed, and brush his teeth and brush his hair. It took him half an hour to do all of it. Jason never showed up during that time.

Dick had to bite his lip and take a moment to keep from crying out every few minutes. He ended up curling up against the wall, his face buried in his knees, biting a towel and screaming into it. He did not get to say good-bye, he did not get to tell Jason how he felt, he did not get to apologize.

The whole day, Dick pretty much sat there, crying until there was no tears left, and screaming his soul’s anguish until his voice was sore and he could barely breathe.

And as the sun started to set, Jason still did not show up.

~

It took Dick several days to get himself together enough to be presentable. He showed a few more potential buyers around the house. There was no blips in the entire tour. They all seemed very satisfied with the house.

It was sold by the end of the week. The day the papers were signed and the keys were handed over, Dick stood in the room he first saw Jason, the room he spent so many nights with the ghost, the place he found the other half of his soul only to lose it a month later.

Dick left the house with all his belongings, walking down the walkway and not looking back. He went back to his apartment and cried himself to sleep.

He dreamt of Jason that night.

But when he woke up, he realized it was all a dream.

~

But then, two weeks later, Dick was driving home from another house when a large truck came barreling around a blind turn, running straight into Dick’s car.

The driver had fallen asleep at the wheel, and Dick’s much smaller car went flying, flipping three times before landing upside down.

The driver of the smaller car did not survive the crash.

~

It turned out, there was an afterlife of sorts. And when Dick pushed through into the white light, he was scooped up in familiar arms before he could even take in his surroundings.

“I’ve missed you so much.”

“J-Jay?”

“Fuck, Dickie, I made a mistake, I’m sorry, sorry, sorry,” Jason murmured into Dick’s hair, stroking it, hugging him close and not letting go.

“Does this mean… I’m dead?” Dick asked, his voice a bit faint.

Jason finally pulled back. “I’m so fucking sorry about that. You didn’t deserve-”

Dick only smiled gently and cupped Jason’s cheek, taking in the other man. “No, it’s okay. I don’t really mind all that much.”

“How can you not mind? That fucking irresponsible driver hit you and you’re the one that pays the price? How is that fair? You still had so much to live for,” Jason said, his voice sounding angry.

Dick laughed gently, kissing Jason on the lips. Jason melted into the kiss. It felt so right. They just automatically clicked; there was no doubt about it. Dick felt like a starved man, but he wanted to make it last this time. He pulled away after a few moments, even though he wanted nothing more than to keep kissing Jason.

“Oh, Jay,” he said quietly. “I’m not mad. Really. I mean, if anything, you should be mad. You were killed in your own home, after all, at a younger age than I was, and then stuck in the house for fifty years with no idea why.” Then Dick’s face went sad. “Why did you leave?”

Jason closed his eyes, pulling Dick in again, tucking him under his chin. “I’m sorry,” Jason said, his voice thick. “I wanted to prove you wrong. I wanted you to see that I was not leaving, and I thought I could not leave yet because… because I hadn’t told you I loved you yet, and that you never said anything to me either.

“But I tried going out of a window and immediately ended up here. I tried to go back, I couldn’t go back, Dickie. I could only watch you from here, and it hurt so much to watch. I’m sorry, so sorry.”

Dick pressed his face into Jason’s chest, reveling in the warmth of his skin, and he had a strange certainty in his heart, knowing that if he went to sleep right now, he would wake and Jason would be there with him.

“I forgive you.” He pulled back again and looked Jason in the eyes. “Jay, I love you so much. I’m sorry I didn’t say it before. But I love you.”

Jason smiled, his eyes swimming with happy tears. He kissed Dick hard and murmured into his lips, “I love you, too, Dickie. So fucking much.”

Death was not their end, oh, no.

Death, was their beginning, and how wondrous it was.

**Author's Note:**

> So I've had this prompt on my TO WRITE list for ever now, and I finally decided to get it out of the way. I really love this idea, and it was going to be cute and fluffy, but damn, I cannot resist angst. I'm sorry all my JayDick has been angsty so far, all my stories to some extent. I will attempt something happier next time, but no guarantees. 
> 
> And while on that topic, I do have another JayDick one-shot/short story I kind of want to write, but it is definitely very angst-heavy. Should I hold it off until after something happy, or just fuck it and write it?
> 
> Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed! Leave me a comment and tell me what you thought! <3


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